Document-Based Knowledge System for Healthcare Data Interoperability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current Electronic Health Record Systems (EHR-S) are inflexible and costly due to their reliance on relational database management systems, limiting user control and data sharing, and hindering effective health information exchange and collaboration across healthcare providers.
Innovation Solution
A Document-Based Knowledge System (DBKS) stores data in discrete, standardized electronic documents that can be controlled and shared by healthcare providers, allowing for secure, reliable, and interoperable data management and collaboration.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If data is stored in relational database management systems with separate tables linked via primary and foreign keys, then data can be organized in a structured manner, but data retrieval and presentation require significant computer processing to follow links and combine data from hundreds of tables
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments patient health data into discrete, standardized electronic documents (such as encounter documents, medication documents, lab result documents) that can be independently stored, managed, and retrieved. Each document contains complete, self-contained information about a specific aspect of patient care, eliminating the need to traverse hundreds of interconnected database tables to assemble data. This segmentation directly reduces data processing time while maintaining structural integrity through standardized document formats.
2Ease of manufacture
If data is stored in numerous separate tables in relational databases, then data can be organized by category, but end users cannot view or use the data without permission from the software manufacturer
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a universal document standard that enables multiple functions: data storage, data exchange between different healthcare systems, user-generated content creation, and cross-vendor interoperability. The standardized electronic documents can be created, viewed, and exchanged by any system compliant with the standard, not just proprietary software. This universality grants end users the ability to access and use their own health data across different platforms and vendors, while maintaining organized categorization through document types and metadata.
3Adaptability or versatility
If health data is stored in hundreds of thousands of separate databases in tens of thousands of different locations, then data can be distributed across multiple providers, but creating a national health information network to share data seamlessly has proved daunting
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies homogeneity by standardizing the format, structure, and content of all electronic health documents across the distributed network. Every document follows the same standardized schema with consistent metadata, identifiers, and data elements. This homogeneity allows any system in the network to process and understand documents from any other system without complex translation layers or proprietary interfaces, dramatically simplifying the network architecture while maintaining flexible data distribution across hundreds of thousands of locations.
4Loss of information
If the federated model is used where providers register with regional health information exchange but don't share data until requested, then data confidentiality is preserved, but information is not available in a timely manner and the information flow is not reliable
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements preliminary action by establishing predefined access rights and document sharing policies before data requests occur. Healthcare providers can specify in advance which documents should be shared with which patients or authorized entities, and the standardized document format enables automatic routing and delivery. This preliminary configuration eliminates the delays inherent in request-based federated models, allowing data to be made available immediately when access rights are established, while maintaining confidentiality through granular, pre-configured permission settings.
Data Source
AI summary
A document-based storage and knowledge production solution designed for use as a primary information system is disclosed. It uses Authentication, Privacy and Security Standards to ensure the source and reliability of the information in the stored documents. It uses Information and Document Standards to explicitly define the information content held in each document. Electronic documents from separate authors, from the same or separate legal entities, are stored together in the same system and can be used in aggregate for the generation of new knowledge. Variations are used to accelerate response times. Other variations describe the method's use as a Variable Electronic Health Record System in which different parts of the system can be produced by separate manufacturers. This is possible because the underlying document-based knowledge system stores the separate documents from each manufacturer's system in such a manner that they can be understood by systems from other manufacturers.